St. Joseph, Minn. – The Saint Benedict volleyball team suffered their second loss of the season tonight, (Oct. 2) to No. 3 ranked St. Thomas.
 
The Blazers (14-2, 3-2 MIAC) were swept 3-0 by the Tommies (14-1, 5-0 MIAC) with 25-13, 25-14 and 25-19 losses in the three sets respectively. It is the second three-set loss for the Blazers in the early conference season, leaving them already two games back of the Tommies in MIAC play.
 
In the first set, the Tommies jumped out to a very quick 9-3 lead. After that, they followed up with a 6-to-0 run and took a 15-4 lead. From there, the Blazers failed to build up a comeback and fell 25-13. The second set started closer after the Blazers took the first point and then tied the score at 2-2. The Tommies proceeded with a 5-to-1 run to take a 7-3 lead and slowly extended this lead with an 8-to-2 run later in the set. Eventually, the Blazers fell again, this time by a score of 25-14.
 
In the third and final set, the Blazers once again grabbed the first point and after dropping three consecutive points, followed up to tie the Tommies at 4-4. The two teams went back and forth for the next eight points and the game was tied at 10-10. The Tommies then began to break away from the Blazers with consecutive 5-to-1 and 4-to-1 runs. The Blazers continued to fight hard all the way until the end where the Tommies finished with the 25-19 win.
 
The Tommies rock solid defense held the Blazers to a team hitting percentage of just -.097 in the first set and .036 in the second, but the Blazers fought back offensively in the third set and finished with a team percentage of .455. The Blazers finished with a .141 attack percentage, their lowest of the season. Conversely, the Tommies were the best they've been all season, hitting .481 in the match, their best on the year by over .100 points.
 
The Tommie defense also held Taya Kockelman (Minneota, Minn.) to only 28 assists, which is a season low for the MIAC leader. Lexi Rinde (Minnetonka, Minn.) led the team in kills tonight with nine and Laura Schmitt (Chaska, Minn.) and Lexi Alm (Forest Lake, Minn.) both added another seven. Chelsea Rachel (Maple Lake, Minn.) led the Blazers defensively once again with nine digs, while Schmitt added another six.
 
The Blazers will go on to take a break from MIAC play in the Saint Mary's Cardinal Invitational this Friday and Saturday (Oct. 4-5) in Winona, Minn. There, the Blazers will play three matches against Dubuque (Iowa), Central (Iowa) and Wisconsin-Eau Claire. After this tournament, the Blazers have seven regular season games remaining, six of which are against MIAC teams.